U.S. author, poet Maya Angelou dies at age 86

WINSTON-SALEM N.C. (Reuters) — U.S. author and poet Maya Angelou has died at age 86 in North Carolina, local media reported on Wednesday, citing her agent and a local official.

Angelou provided eloquent commentary on race, gender and living life to its fullest in poems and memoirs such as 'I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,' which brought her wide acclaim.

She wrote more than 30 books and was a Grammy winner for three spoken-word albums. She had a home in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, where she was a professor of American studies at Wake Forest University.

She was honored at the National Book Awards ceremony last year for her service to the literary community.

Maya Angelou spoke at the Iowa Women's Leadership Conference in Coralville in April 2011. Read reporter Diana Nollen's story about the speech here.